Pop Quiz: Alicia Keys

Pop Quiz: Alicia Keys

Aidin Vaziri | Alicia Keys has been on tour forever -- or at least since she released her last album, the wildly successful "Diary of Alicia Keys," way back in 2003. The R&B singer-songwriter-pianist swept up four Grammy Awards earlier this year, to add to the five she won with her breakthrough 2001 debut, "Songs in A Minor," and has been through the Bay Area several times since hitting the road. But she's coming back again -- to the Paramount Theatre in Oakland for a pair of shows on Tuesday and Wednesday -- just before the tour finally wraps up at the end of the month in Las Vegas.



Alicia Keys
Q: How many awards shows did you attend last year?
A: A very large amount. But it's all been very good, and I'm totally not cynical about it like you are.
Q: People just aren't getting tired of "The Diary of Alicia Keys." Don't you kind of wish they would?
A: No. I mean, it's pretty amazing, especially in regards to the climate of the industry. Things happen so fast. People have singles out, and there's not any type of longevity in regards to an album or that kind of thing. So for people to enjoy my album and really connect with it to the point where I'm still able to tour a year and a half after its release is just crazy.
Q: So the first three singles ate up the last year and a half. There are 11 more songs on the album. You could very well be on the road until 2012.
A: We're definitely not doing that. Definitely not.
Q: OK. On June 1, where are you going to be and what are you going to be doing?
A: Well, May 28 is going to be my last show. I'm going to wake up the next morning and be on a dreaded airplane -- I hate airplanes -- but I'll be excited because I'm heading home. I'm going directly to my house, chill out a little bit, take out a book, sit outside and just really breathe.
Q: Breathing is necessary.
A: Exactly. It's the first time I'm going to enjoy and have a whole summer in years.
Q: Admit it. You're going to hit the kiddie pool.